WASHINGTON — Peace through strength, in writing. On Friday, October 16, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order implementing the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 — the tough sanctions law he signed in the Oval Office on September 18 — and put a massive tariff hammer squarely on the table.

Under the order, the rate of duty on goods from the Russian Federation is set to rise by 500 percent. Goods from the five largest importers of Russian crude oil and natural gas face a 100 percent increase if those countries knowingly make new purchases of Russian oil or gas on or after October 18, 2026. And the top five facilitators of Russian oil sanctions evasion face a 100 percent increase of their own — on top of any other duties already in place.

Then the President did what master dealmakers do: he kept his finger on the trigger. Using the national-interest authority written into the Graham Act, President Trump waived the new duties and a list of the law’s sanctions provisions for now, certifying to Congress that the waiver serves America’s national interests. Those waivers stay in effect only until the President or the Secretary of State decides further action is appropriate — and every existing Russia sanction under prior executive orders stays fully in force.

The order also puts the U.S. Trade Representative on watch, working with the Secretaries of State, Treasury and Energy to monitor who is buying Russian crude and natural gas and who is helping Russia dodge sanctions, and to promptly report anything that calls for further action. Duties go to the Trade Representative to administer; sanctions authorities go to State and Treasury.

The goal has never changed. “We want the war ended,” President Trump told reporters on the South Lawn. “We are helping them, and we are sharing intel. We want the war to end. So we’re working with them and with Russia on getting the war to end.” With a 500 percent hammer ready to drop, Moscow and its oil customers now know exactly what is at stake. Watch the President in the video above.